France's Drivy gets acquired by Getaround for $300 million

The US-based car-sharing company Getaround has acquired Drivy, one of Europe's largest car-sharing platforms for $300 million. Getaround claims that the acquisition makes it “the world's leading car-sharing marketplace” with a total of 5 million users and a presence in 300 cities in Europe and the US.

Founded in 2010 in Paris, Drivy is currently present in six countries: France, Germany, Spain, Austria, Belgium, and the U.K. The company claims to have 2.5 million users and 55,000 cars listed on its peer-to-peer sharing platform.

"Car-sharing will replace car ownership in large urban markets, meeting consumer demands for instant and flexible transportation options, while also making cities more liveable by freeing them from idle cars and reducing congestion and pollution in the process,” said Paulin Dementhon, Drivy founder and CEO. “Connected technology, frictionless user experience, and increased car fleet density are the keys to this evolution, as they make it more convenient to use a shared car than your own.”

Dementhon will stay in the company as the CEO of Europe, together with Drivy's executive team. For now, Drivy continues to operate under its own brand but will change its name to Getaround in a few months and switch to one global app.